Dimmed But Never Died
by Teerisha
Summary: Nora. Patch. The infamous wedding garter ceremony. The heavens still can't seem to stop these star-crossed lovers. Love, Laughter, Lust, and Loss. Can true love truly prevail through it all? Only one way to find out! Click away.


**Author's Note: Hello there fellow reader! My name is Trisha and I hope that you enjoy this story of mine. I'm still not sure if I want to keep it a one-shot or make a full blown series! Any and all reviews are appreciated. Thank you :)**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the Hush, Hush world. All of that belongs to the wonderful Becca Fitzpatrick._

 _..._

 _Thud._

I carefully peeked through my eyelids, as if that would somehow get me out of the inevitable.

 _And the heavens laugh at me again._ I stared down at my hands in disbelief.

Lying perfectly still in the clutches of my French-tipped nails was indeed... the bride's bouquet. Its red and white roses were adorned with glistening diamonds that taunted me.

Within seconds, an intense white light blinded me. Before I could protest, the giggling girls had already pushed me towards and onto a red-clothed chair strategically placed in the middle of the glossy, hardwood dance floor. It was as if they wanted to maximize the embarrassment of the chosen sacrifices for the traditional "tossing the garter" ceremony for eligible bachelors and bachelorettes; legend has it that the male and female who participate in this will be the next to marry. _Great. Just great._

"You can do it babe!" Vee enthusiastically yelled from the crowd.

I managed to crack a small smile in her direction. The DJ then announced for all of the single men to gather round and prepare to catch the garter from the groom. I squinted to my left, but failed to clearly see what was going on. The spotlight was still on me and still very bright. _These lights are so annoying!_ All I heard were cheers. After what seemed to be like an eternity, the glaring lights, as well as the limelight, finally shifted from me to the lucky gentleman who caught the bride's frilly, red garter.

The black and white sea of ties and tuxes parted. The spotlight landed on a tall, well-built, raven-haired male. His figure was positioned towards the other men, so I couldn't really see his face. I still managed to get a small preview of him. I scanned the length of his back and in approval. _Hmm, he has a really nice back._ After receiving several congratulatory pats on the rear, he finally turned around.

 _Woah._

I blinked twice.

His onyx black hair was flawlessly disheveled. He had a jawline chiseled to perfection. His fair skin glistened under the spotlight. His white long-sleeved button up only accentuated his taut muscles. He basically epitomized the qualities of an aesthetically pleasing human being. _Shouldn't he be on some runway for a fashion show instead of here at this wedding?_

What really stood out of his physical characteristics, however, weren't any other those generic, "what-females-crave" aesthetics. What stood out were his eyes.

Bewitching black met graphite gray.

I felt instantly drawn to them. He had dark, mysterious, ebony orbs that seemed to penetrate into your soul. They took in everything that they saw, but at the same time did not give anything back. It felt a little intimidating, but it was also irresistibly intriguing.

From the corner of my eye, I felt the envious glares of the ladies pierce through my back as if they were throwing sharp, blood drawing daggers my way. I broke our stare to pleadingly throw a look of desperation to Vee to help me get out of this situation. All she did was smile back and flirtatiously wink.

The familiar beats of "Earned It" by The Weeknd started to play. Its slow rhythm and classy undertones set a sensual mood. _Way to go DJ, as if this wasn't already super awkward._ My eyes caught movement and my attention snapped back to Mr. Mysterious.

 _The beat of the drum._

Step.

 _The stroke of the chord._

Step.

 _The snap of the snare._

Step.

Every stride that he took matched each individual note that played and it only exuberated with an unchallenged confidence. The way that he approached me almost seemed… predatorial. He was the lion. I was the lamb. And the king of the jungle was going in for the kill.

As he made his way towards me, he effortlessly loosened his black, silk necktie. My visible gulp probably caused the smug smirk to appear on his face. Despite having eyes as black as night, I saw them playfully twinkle. He was sexy. And he knew it. _Don't let him get to you. Don't let him get to you. Don't let him get to you._

His 6 foot, 4 inch frame towered over me. It didn't help that I was also sitting in a chair. His close proximity, alone, made my palms sweat and my heart run. I instinctively sucked in a breath of air. _What is going on with me?_ He snatched my breath, just like that, as if the act was second nature to him and… as if it was second nature to me to feel that way.

He raised an eyebrow, as if to ask me for permission to continue; although, a tiny voice in my head argued that this guy would have done whatever he liked regardless of what I said. Call it a hunch. I merely stared back at him, losing all trust in my voice. He took my silence as a yes and kneeled before me.

He gingerly pushed aside the silky fabric of my scarlet dress. The slit on the gown generously helped him and exposed all of the skin leading up to the beginning of my thighs. I noticed his slight pause. He took an extra second to admire my legs. _Thank the Lord for waxing strips! Not that I care about what he thinks of me. Maybe._

He easily slid the garter past my viciously vermillion heels. As he stared down at the garter, I took note that he had beautiful, long and dark lashes. His touch abruptly pulled me out of my thoughts.

Our skin-to-skin contact felt exhilarating. My breath caught in my throat. He noticed my reaction and I caught his devious smirk. His fingers momentarily left the garter and trailed a hot path up my knee. He proceeded to trace a figure that I didn't quite recognize. _Was that a feather?_

He knew exactly how to set me off. This was both strange and comforting all at the same time. I felt scared but I also felt strangely soothing. We don't even know each other's names, yet I felt like we've known each other to the point of total memorization of the other.

The crowd's whoops and whistles were nothing short of thunderous. Remember when you were little and your parents took you out to see the fireworks and one year you managed to get really close seats and as a result you could feel the booms of the explosions in your heart? Yeah, it felt something like that.

He never broke eye contact as he continued to inch the garter higher and higher up my thigh. His smoldering black eyes burned with such a strong passion. As much as I tried to conceal my reaction from his advancements, the blush that crept up my cheeks betrayed my otherwise cool exterior.

Electricity shot up my leg, which sent a pleasant shiver down my spine. The song was nearing the end.

He swiftly pulled me out of the chair and we stood directly in front of each other. Chest to chest. Face to face. Eye to eye.

I caught a whiff of his scent. Mint…soap…and just something else unworldly. Whatever it was, it was horribly intoxicating. He gently raised his hand to my face.

The feel of his warm hand cupping my left cheek felt excruciatingly inviting. And at that point, I couldn't do it anymore. I just couldn't. There was a certain familiarity about him that I couldn't shake off. All of my encounters with other guys in the past, ranging from tiny crushes to longtime boyfriends paled in comparison to what I felt that night with him. So, I stopped resisting. I shamelessly leaned into his touch and let out a sigh of relief.

I felt his head drop closer to me. His lips dangerously hovered over mine. His eyes shifted to my necklace. I had it tucked underneath my dress because it didn't quite match my attire. Not many people knew, but I never took that necklace off. I had an unexplainable attachment to it that exceeded a normal person's love for an inanimate object. His right hand carefully lifted the rest of the chain out of my dress. It revealed the square-shaped rounded-edged singular silver link. He held it between his two fingers, looking at it in heavy fascination. He flipped the link once more.

Then, I felt him stiffen. The mood drastically changed.

I could have sworn that I saw a flicker or a spark of recognition in his eyes. His eyebrows furrowed. He blinked hard multiple times. Then, he shifted his gaze to me. He stared deeply into my eyes, as if he was searching for something; searching and searching and searching, but never finding. For someone who sure looked like he knew exactly what he was doing, he seemed so vulnerable and lost.

It was as if time stood still. We were no longer bound by the constraints of the present. We were no longer at a wedding. We were no longer under the microscope of the partygoers. It was just the two of us. I closed my eyes for a brief second and selfishly enjoyed the moment before opening them again and meeting his intense gaze. I could almost see the gears turning in his mind, however failing to come up with a product.

He broke the spell.

"Have we met before?"

 **And we meet again! Tell me what you thought of the story! Reviews encourage any writer :)**


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